Stock-car.



H. H. DUDLEY.

STOCK CAR.

APPLIOATION FILED Lamas, 1911.

. 1,981,588 Patented Dec. 16,1913.

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STOCK CAR.

APPLIOATION FILED 1,111.28, 1911.

L08L588, Patented Dec. 16, 1913.

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COLUMNA PLANOGRAPH Co..wAsHlNaToN. D. C.

UNITE@ STATES PATENT @FFIQIL HOWARD H. DUDLEY, OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

STOCK-CAR.

Application filed January 28, 1911.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, HOWARD H. DUDLEY, acitizen of the United States, residing at Kansas City, in the county ofJackson and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Stock-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to stock cars and has for its object to provide acar which may easily and quickly be converted from a single to a doubledeck structure or vice versa, to adapt it for use in hauling cattle orhorses, or when converted for hauling sheep, hogs, etc. In accomplishingthis ob ject I have provided the improved details of structure whichwill hereinafter be fully7 described and are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein 2- Figure I is a side view of the body ofa stock car constructed according to my invention, a part of the upperportion of the car being broken away to more clearly illustrate theinterior construction. Fig. II is an end view of the car. Fig. III is avertical section on the line IIL-III, Fig. I. F IV is a horizontalsection on the line IV HIV, Fig. I. Fig. V is an end view of a part ofthe car, showing the bracket locking lever in open position. Fig. VI isa detail perspective of the lever and its locking bracket. F ig. VII isa vertical section on the line VII-VII, Fig. IV. Fig. VIII is ahorizontal section on the line VIIIVIII, F I, illustrating the decklatches. Fig. IX is a vertical section on the line IX-IX, Fig. IV,showing a deck tightening screw.

Referring more in detail to the parts: 1 designates an ordinary railwaybox car having the flooring 2, side posts 3, end posts t and roof beams5, such parts being of a well known and ordinary construction.

Located within the car and spaced from the sides and ends thereof, tohave free vertical movement therein, is an auxiliary flooring G, whichmay be of any convenient construction. but of sufficient strength tosupport a substantial weight.

Journaled in bearings 7 in the roof beams 5 are the windlass shafts 8,the ends of which project through the ends of the car and have handwheels 9 rigidly secured thereto. Also fixed on the shafts 8 are ratchetwheels 10, and pivotally mounted on a convenient part of the main carstructure are pawls 11 which are adapted for co- Specication of LettersPatent.

Patented Dec. 16,1913.

Serial No. 605,308.

operation with the ratchets 10 in the usual manner.

rl-inchored on the windless shafts 8 are ropes 12, which depend in thecar and are fixed to the auxiliary deck 6, so that by turning the handwheels 9 the auxiliary deck may be raised or lowered.

Attached to the faces of the side posts 3 are plates 13, and pivotallymounted in said plates are bars 14C, to which are firmly attached thedeck supporting brackets 15, each bracket having an inside sectionadapted to rest on one of the longitudinal beams 16 of the car structureand an outside section 17 for engaging the under edge of a keeper beam18 that is fixed to and extends longitudinally between the side posts 3.

Pivotally mounted on the roof beams 5 at the outside of each end of thecar are the levers 19 having rods 20 extending into proximity to theends of the bracket bars 14k and having` handle portions 21 projectinginwardly into proximity to the hand wheels 9.

Rigidly fixed to the end of each bracket beam 14 is a crank 22, which inturn is pivotally connected with the lower end of a lever rod 20. Alsofixed to the roof beams 5 are latch keepers 23, which are preferablyformed of channel metal, the flanges of which open outwardly and areprovided with apertures 24 through which the pins 25, that are chainedto the car roof, may be carried.

In side beams 26 on the car body and in end posts 4, about half way upon the car, and also preferably in the same parte, near the bottom ofthe car, are threaded sleeves 27. Threaded into each sleeve 27 is a rod28, the inner end of which is adapted to bear against the side or end ofthe auxiliary deck when the latter is in position at the center orbottom of the car, and the outer end of which is provided with ahand-wheel 29. In order to save wear on the deck, at the point ofengagement of the rod 28, I prefer to provide the deck with metal plates30, against which the ends of the rods may bear.

In order to lock the deck in place, I provide the side posts, adjacentto the door openings, with horizontally arranged sockets 31 and the deckwith collars 32 and with stop lugs 33 which are arranged in lince withthe collars 32, but spaced therefrom sufciently to admit the shank 34 ofa locking pin therebetween. lith this construction, when the floatingdeck is in place, the pin 35 may be inserted into the socket and theshank turned downwardly into the space between the collar and lug. Tounlock the deck it is only necessary to remove the pin from the socket.It is apparent that when the pin is in place it cannot be accidentallywithdrawn because of the position of the lug 38 which limits the travelof the pin shank.

Presuming a car to be equipped with an l auxiliary deck andoperatingparts as described, the use of the car is as follows: Forhauling cattle or large stock, the auxiliary deck is either lifted tothe top of the car and heldin elevated position by the ratchets on thewindlass shafts, or is lowered to the bottom of the car and held inplace by tightening the rods 2S against the sides and ends thereof, theauxiliary deck supporting brackets 15 being held in elevated position byturning the lever handles 20 outwardly andy locking` same in the keepers23, as illustrated in Fig. V, in which position the supporting bracketswill be held vertically as shown in Fig. VII. i/Vhen it is desired toconvert the car to a double deck structure for hauling sheep or othersmall stock, the auxiliary deck, if located at the bottom of the car, isreleased by the rods 28 and lifted about the center ofthe car, byoperating the hand wheels 9 tor withdraw the rope on the windlassshafts. The lever arms 2l are then turned back toward the center of thecar, the rods 2() lowering the brackets l5 until their inside sectionsrest o-n the beam 16 and their outside sections engage the under facesof the keeper beams 1S. The deck is then lowered onto the brackets, bywhich it is supported, and tightened in place by screwing the rods 2Sagainst the sides and ends. The deck when in this condition will be assubstantial as any permanent upper deck, and the car may be used in theusual manner. The manner of converting the car back to its originalcondition is apparent from the description of the operation of arrangingthe parts for the double deck structure.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein anddesire to secure by Letters-Patent is l. ln a stock car, a car bodyhaving vertical sid-es, a vertically movable deck between said sides,and horizontally adjustable means supported by said sides for engagingwith and holding said deck against horizontal movement.

2. In a stock car, a car body having vertical sides, a verticallymovable deck between said sides, and horizontal screws having threadedconnection with said sides and adapted to bear against and hold saiddeck against horizontal movement.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inpresence of two subscribing witnesses.

HOWARD H. DUDLEY.

Vitnesses E. B.. HOUSE, FLORENCE M. VENDIG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained-for've cents each,.by addressingthe Commissioner. of Patents, Washington; D. C.

